Share this with

Wayne Rooney believes Steven Gerrard should have been honoured with the England captaincy much earlier in his international career.

Gerrard is set to lead his country for the 32nd time in Friday night’s World Cup qualifier against Montenegro at Wembley.

It puts him seventh in the all-time list of England captains, just two behind John Terry, who he played under for so long.

The 33-year-old will never get close to the record, jointly-held by Bobby Moore and Billy Wright, who each did the prestigious job on 90 occasions, or even David Beckham, named skipper 59 times.

Yet Rooney feels Gerrard’s figure pays scant regard to his abilities as a leader, which he is convinced should have been recognised on a permanent basis far earlier than the weeks prior to Euro 2012, having previously worn the armband on a temporary basis only.